Game apparatus.



1 No. 696,435. Patented Apr. I, I902. j w. c. nemsuzcnsn.

GAME APPARATUS.

(Application filed. Apr. 28, 1900.) (No Model.)

- ORA/EKG UNITED @TATns PATENT IVILLIAM C. HEIMBUECHER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

GAME APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 696,435, dated April 1, 1902.

Application filed April 23, 1900.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, WILLIAM C. IIEIM- BUECHER, acitizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Game Apparatus, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification.

My invention relates to a game apparatus or puzzle which I have termed the leap-frog puzzle or game. I have illustrated the same in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a plan view of the board, showing the movable pieces in the initial positions. Fig. 2 is a plan View of the board. Fig. 3 is a sectional View of the board, showing two of the movable pieces in position. Fig. 4: is a view of one of the movable pieces of the game apparatus.

Like letters refer to like parts in the several figures.

The board a may be made of any material, preferably thin sheet metal, having at two of the opposite edges downwardly extending flanges a a. This board I preferably place in the body I) of a box, and a suitable cover may be placed upon the top of the box, if desired.

In packing the game for shipment the board a may be removed from the body I) and the movable pieces placed within the body of the box, after which the board a may be again placed in position, the movable pieces being thus held between the body of the box and the board a.

The board a is provided with thirteen spaces or indicated positions of rest a a for the movable pieces, the circles in Fig. 2 indicating the spaces. These may be marks upon a smooth surface or, preferably, are holes passing through the board, as shown more clearly in Fig. 3. There are thirteen of these spaces or holes, the same being arranged in the form of a square with three upon a side, while one space or hole is arranged in a central position and four other holes or spaces are disposed one between each of the corner holes or spaces and the central hole or space. The movable pieces may be of any suitable form and construction; but I preferably form the Serial No. 13,916. (No model.)

same with the body portion 0 made to simulate a frog, the body portion being provided with a shank 0', adapted to pass through the openings a in the board. Twelve movable pieces are employed. The objects 0 have bases larger than the holes a to entirely conceal them when the objects are placed thereover, whereby a neat and pleasing. appearance is presented to the apparatus when in use. For the same reason the shanks and holes are so formed as to permit facing all frogs toward the pond or center hole, and the shanks are tapered, so that the objects can be readily moved from one point to an other with ease and are still firmly held in the proper and upright positions when at rest.

The movable pieces or frogs are initially placed in the positions shown in Fig. 1, all of the spaces or positions of rest being thus occupied except the central one, which is termed the pond. One of the corner frogs is then moved to the central position, and in doing so it is necessary to jump over one of the intermediate frogs, and this frog is then removed from the board. The frog over which the moving frog passes is each time removed from the board. The frogs may be moved in any direction and to any position, provided that in doing so the moving frog is caused to jump over one of the stationary frogs. The object is to so move the several frogs that when all of the frogs except two have been removed from the board the last frog which is jumped will pass to the pond or central position of rest, all of the frogs being thus taken from the board except the last one, which alights in the pond.

The game may be modified and the difficulty of the solution of the puzzle increased by providing one of the frogs of a different color or providing any other distinguishing mark, the object of this modified form of the game being to so move the several frogs that the one with the distinguishing-mark will alight in the pond by the last movement.

' I have illustrated the upper right-hand frog in Fig. 1 as having a different color from the remaining frogs, and in solving the puzzle or game with this modified structure it is the object to complete the game or puzzle with this colored frog in the pond.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a game or puzzle apparatus, the combination with a rectangular box b, ofaboard a adapted to form a cover or top for said box and provided at two opposed edges with inwardly extending flanges. a7 a to telescope with the corresponding side portions ofthe box I), the said board having holes therein, thirteen in number, arranged one near each corner of the board and at the corner of a rectangle, one at the center of the rectangle, one between the center and each corner and one between adjacent corner-holes,and a plurality of movable objects, twelve in number, adapted to be stored within the box when not in use but to cooperate with said holes and be manipulated with reference thereto when in use substantially as described, each said object having a base of larger dimensions than said holes whereby the hole is entirely concealed from view when the object is placed thereover, and a shank carried upon the base of each said object to extend through said holes, said shank being tapered to facilitate the seating and removal of the object, substantially as herein described and for the purposes set forth. 1

2. In a game or puzzle apparatus, the combination with a rectangular box I), ofa board a adapted to form a cover or top forsaid box and provided at two opposed edges with inwardly-extending flanges a a to telescope with the corresponding side portions of the box I), the said board having holes therein, thirteen in number, arranged one near each corner of the board and at the corner of a rectangle, one at the center of the rectangle, one between the center and each corner and one between adjacent corner-holes, and a plurality of movable objects, twelve in number, adapted to be stored within the box when not in use but to cooperate with said holes and be manipulated with reference thereto when in use substantially as described, each said object having a body portion made to simulate a frog and having a base of larger dimensions than said holes whereby the same are completely covered when a frog is placed thereover, a shank carried upon the base to extend through the holes and being tapered to facilitate seating and removing the object, the shanks and holes being constructed to permit facing the frogs toward the center of the board, and one of the frogs being provided with a distinguishingmark such as a different color, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

In witness whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name in the presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM C. IIEIMBUECIIER.

Witnesses:

W. CLYDE JoNEs, HARRY W. BELFIELD. 

